Taylor Pritchett, Lilium’s lead floral designer, was named the ‘People’s Choice’ winner at the 2017 Texas Designer of the Year Competition held on January 21. The contest was conducted by the Texas State Florists’ Association (TSFA), and held at the Dallas Market Center’s International Trade Plaza.
TIMED CHALLENGES
This year’s theme was ‘Imagination/Innovation’. Designers were asked to participate in three timed challenges with this theme in mind. The first challenge was an interpretive design capturing the essence of a quote by Albert-Laszlo Barabasi, “Imagination is at the heart of all innovation.” Prior to the competition, designers created a prop or container that would provide the base of their design. The flowers and supplies, as well as other creative elements, were provided by the TSFA, and were not revealed until the day of competition. Designers were given 45 minutes to complete their designs with the materials provided.
For the second challenge, designers had 30 minutes to create a holiday arrangement using an inspiration board provided by the Dallas Market Center. Again, the flowers and supplies, as well as the containers, were provided by the TSFA.
In the third and final challenge, designers were presented an envelope outlining a surprise situation. Designers were asked to provide samples for a bride planning a winter wedding. Designs were to include a bridal bouquet, a one-dozen rose arrangement for the groom to present in his proposal, a boutonniere, and wedding flowers for the mother of the bride. Competitors had one hour and 15 minutes to complete all four designs using flowers and materials provided.
JUDGING CRITERIA
TSFA judges scored designs in all three challenges based on:
- Category Interpretation
- Creativity
- Scale and Proportion
- Unity, Harmony and Texture
- Physical and Visual Balance
- Focal Emphasis
- Line, Movement and Rhythm
- Depth
- Color Balance and Harmony
- Professional Application Regarding Mechanics
Prizes were awarded for first, second and third place. In addition, a People’s Choice award was given based on votes cast by event attendees. Taylor, who was competing for the first time, tested her skills against 15 other floral designers from across the state of Texas. Taylor is certainly Lilium’s choice for best floral designer, and we are proud that others recognize that, too! Congratulations, Taylor!